Turkey: more than 6,000 Syrians flee conflict near border

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey's emergency management agency says more than 6,000 Syrians have crossed into Turkey in the past week, fleeing fighting between Islamic State militants and Kurdish forces near the northern Syrian city of Tel Abyad.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority said Wednesday that the refugees entered through the border town of Akcakale, where they were being checked for health problems before being transferred to camps or allowed to join relatives in Turkey.

Kurdish fighters are closing in on the Islamic state group in Tel Abyad, capturing towns and villages in the country's northeast, supported by U.S.-led airstrikes. Tel Abyad is a key link between Turkey and the city of Raqqa, the Islamic militants' de-facto capital.